People reading this and beating themselves up - don’t forget that a lot of high cost cities will naturally pay higher. For example, I used to work in the Bay Area and had a 100k salary, but for a tech job in the Bay Area it’s considered quite unremarkable given I shell out almost half of my pay on rent.

Very true. My friend is an event planner/coordinator for a large corporation and makes close to $100k, but says it's almost entirely due to our proximity to NYC. Her and her SO are looking to move more west for his job and she's struggling to find jobs in the same vein that pay even half that.

Very smart comment. This applies to everywhere around the world: NYC, London, Munich, Shanghai, Tokyo, Melbourne, etc. Bigger cities always pay better but the cost of living, especially housing & rent are high. Do you have any tips on saving money when you work at a big city? Considering most of us also have to update our work wardrobe so we look nice & fit in.

I was thinking the same. People tend to focus on what they make, not what their net worth is. If you make $200k a year and spend it all (or more), you can easily have a lower net worth than someone making $50k. You may have nicer things - but you're still broke.

I remember hearing about couple of pawn shops in Manhattan and Beverly Hills that specialize in high end pawn items, because a lot of "wealthy" people actually don't have any liquid assets. It's all tied up in huge mortgages, loans, etc, etc.

I work a full time desk job Mon-Fri that's super chill and I'm also a relatively successful wedding photographer. My desk job makes it pretty easy for me to manage the business side of my photography (emails, contracts, blogging, sometimes editing, etc.) so it's kind of like my office hours during the week.

Most people get married on federal holidays or the weekends in the summer when I'm also off at the desk job, and also have similar work schedules. It ends up being a great balance.

Be careful with this! I read once (and I'm sorry I don't currently have the source for this statement) that if you're on the clock at one job but doing work for a side job, then your employer could be legally entitled to any compensation you receive at the side job since you used their company time to do it. Again, I don't have a source on that at the moment and I could be remembering it incorrectly, but it's definitely something worth looking into before you run into any legal trouble!

I know 2 very successful wedding photographers who makes 400k+ annually. The wedding industry is giant, and great photographers can absolutely be worth the money. The difference between a mediocre photographer and an amazing photographer is very much reflected in what they charge.

Not OP or a paralegal, but am an attorney. The main difference is that paralegals cannot sign off on court filings. Additionally, while both positions are client-facing, paralegals typically ask questions and take notes to get familiar with a (potential) client’s particular case, whereas attorneys will do that, but also give legal advice in consultation meetings.

Apart from that, paralegals do legal research, write memos, draft filings, and a host of other things. A good paralegal is invaluable.

I swear I answered this hours ago but I don’t see it now. Sorry about that!

Anyway, I am in house now and have an extensive ediscovery background. My position is more like a paralegal IT hybrid position. I collect and manage massive amounts of electronic data and oversee law firms Billings- among many other tasks. I literally saved my company millions of dollars last year with one of my great ideas to streamline our discovery processes and reduce ediscovery costs by millions. I am paid well but I am worth every penny.

In my office (criminal defense) a paralegal is a very organized administrator who prepares necessary documents and completes tasks that don’t require bar admission. They don’t interact with clients, write motions, appear in court, or sign off on subpoenas. But they often draft my subpoenas, help with the proper labels on motions, and interact with court clerks when I need transcripts or files etc. they also physically serve and file motions and discovery, etc.

Like lawyers, there are all kinds of paralegals. There are young paralegals straight out of college, there are very experienced paralegals who have billing rates that rival those of lawyers or might even manage other paralegals/departments, there are paralegals who might be a notch above a secretary, etc. Some paralegals might be better "lawyers" than newer lawyers who have no experience. Some paralegals suck. Like lawyers, a good or expert paralegal is very valuable.

I’m very aware of that. I was a paralegal for over 5 years before leaving the field do contract management. There’s a world of difference between a civil litigation paralegal at a small firm and a paralegal at a multinational firm.

My area is also crap for legal pay. I make more now as an entry level contract manager/industrial engineer (my role is...weird) than my attorney did when I was a paralegal.

I think anyone considering the field needs to be prepared to always be learning- esp in the area of information technology. This is not a career where you can just push paper and expect to
Get ahead. I’m always attending CLEs and conferences to keep my skills sharp.

Not OP, but former paralegal. Just putting it out there that paralegal jobs are not created equal. Lots of them are untrained admin assistants to lawyers (still extremely valuable, but often paid poorly and not well-respected). If someone wants to pursue a paralegal gig in hopes of making OP's money, I'd recommend they only do it with a firm that will train and specialize them and consider going to school for a certificate. And these higher paying jobs are becoming less common, it seems to me. It's also worth noting that being a paralegal making money like that comes with a lot of the stresses attorneys deal with but with less pay, like monthly hour minimums, long hours, stringent deadlines.

I did put in my time, for sure. I was at a firm for over 10 years doing complex litigation including class actions. I’ve worked many large scale trials- with multi million dollar verdicts- and lived for months at a time in hotels, working 16 hr days- but paralegals also get overtime pay and I did all that before kids

Those giant high voltage transmission towers and lines that take power from power plants to the users? I watch those and maintain them. I am the control room gal, though. I send other people out to climb them or whatever.

I got into that by having the right qualifications and experience at the right time. I know that sounds snarky, but it is not meant to be. I had lots of relevant experience in power plant operations before this job and a willingness to learn. And I needed a job.

My experience was 6 years operating nuke reactors in the Navy, 2 years operating nuke plants in the civilian side, and a few years in other electrical jobs.

It requires a certificate by North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). Specifically, it requires the Transmission Operator license, but that is changing in the next few years to a System Operator license but I am not quite sure of the new requirements. The test is currently about 600 dollars a try, and it is pretty difficult, even with studying.

I had an interview for a system operator job at my parent company but they never called back. I’m currently a substation operator, and was looking forward to the more stable hours, and not being interrupted in my off time, but not looking forward to the pay cut. It would take probably 15 years or so (at this specific company) to make what I currently am making out in the field. Considered applying to other system coordinator jobs, but meh... getting married in May, and don’t really want to turn life completely on its head while that is happening.

I interned at this company for a couple months before with the same team and loved it! So I think it's safe to say I have a good idea of what I'm getting into. I agree that the startup world can be pretty varied and it might be hard to know what to expect before starting a job, especially as a relatively inexperienced new grad.

Just a little bit short of that number but I work for the US government. My job is super chill (as I write this on Reddit at 2:40 sitting at my desk lol), just admin/project management type duties. Can't beat the job security in my opinion.

Those parts of working for the government definitely sound nice. Do you know if there are any remote work options where you could work for the government but also not have to be in the same office everyday?

With the agency I'm in, most contractors are remote. Of course we don't get the same benefits, but the pay is comparable or more. Every agency is different, but the government employees I know can telework at least 2 days/week.

Unfortunately all candidates have to go through usajobs and from what I can tell it’s not super straightforward in what they’re looking for because they often have an internal candidate in mind. Also government resumes look a little bit different and include hours/week worked and other quirks. Make sure your resume matches the required experience exactly (even if it’s a stretch). I think there are examples out there. People love the job security because once you’re in, it’s really tough to be fired (I know several whose work ethic would never cut it in private industry). But it is really hard to get in. Good luck though!

Also government resumes look a little bit different and include hours/week worked and other quirks.

Fascinating. Will have to look for that.

People love the job security because once you’re in, it’s really tough to be fired (I know several whose work ethic would never cut it in private industry)

I formerly worked for a unionized non-profit, but was frustrated with some people's incompetence so I decided to try out the private industry. It's possible my company is more competitive than most (I really have no basis of comparison) but wow, I feel like I gave up an incredible amount in terms of quality of life. It's really affected what I think I value in work. So the work-life balance aspect of government work is definitely appealing.

Networking - Try to find out the contract companies in the area that work in the industry you're targeting on base. Being hired in as a contractor is often times, a lot easier. While you gain experience on base, you will make a lot of contacts and getting a civilian government position will become easier.

(Started out as a base contractor).

Edit -

Example, if you're looking for techincian and/or engineering positions, look to Raytheon, Boeing, Ball, etc. Look to the smaller local companies as well. (My entry point was Ball and I already had a security clearance).

Sigh, I studied business back in Uni, after graduating I always regret I studied that. I wish I studied something like accounting, engineering, even just work at an auto body shop is better than some useless majors like marketing, Econ and HR.

This is my dream job. I have a whole world built out and currently have the first 5 chapters written, but I haven't prioritized my free time properly out of low confidence. I know I have something truly wonderful... but I am still working around the idea that I am good enough. General Anxiety Disorder issues.

Can you share how you felt when publishing your first work and/or book? Do you have any advice for current potential authors?

Can you share how you felt when publishing your first work and/or book?

Terrified and thrilled at the same time. Wildly different depending on the day. I went to therapy for a year to stabilize.

Do you have any advice for current potential authors?

Novelist is not really a full time job, unless you're JK Rowling. The income is unsteady and never guaranteed, and usually not enough to live on and justify the gap in your employment if your next book doesn't sell. It's best not to think of it as a status you attain, but more like a potentially lucrative hobby. If you make money off it, great! If not, you're still proud of the book you made. Also, Google everything. There's great advice out there on how to search for agents, how to query, etc. Be very open to revisions! No one's book is perfect, especially not the first three drafts.

You phrased this pretty mean. I'm published with one of the Big 5 houses. I'm not cut out for self-publishing. I have researched how much effort it requires and I prefer to just write books at a moderately slow pace.

I got into it by querying agents until I got an offer of rep. I don't think I'm pandering by publishing traditionally. I appreciate all the hard work they do to edit and promote my books.

I've always wanted to write novels but just don't think I have the skill for it (I'm currently an English major and hoping to get my masters in library and Informational sciences). Did you ever feel like you weren't good enough? If so, how did you overcome it?

Of course. I still frequently feel I'm not good enough. But it's important to remember that although it can feel like art and entertainment just appear like magic, the truth is that every book you've read was made by somebody who just tried their best to make something good to read, so we'd have more novels on the shelf.

As much as other people's opinions matter to me, ultimately, I wouldn't do it if I didn't enjoy the process. If you like to make art and challenge yourself to get better, you should make art. To be a bit morbid, there's no celestial court deciding if you were a good enough novelist. There's only the time you have now, and the joy you can make for yourself.

Can I how you got there? And what they are looking for when it comes to a job like that? Did you go to graduate business school? Sorry! I’m a business major and that’s my dream job! I just really wanna know what all it entails

Great to be asking questions! Here goes (sorry for the length in advance):

I was also a business major in college, and lucked out with a bunch of relevant internships. This is soooo fucking crucial, and I really can't stress this enough: if your school does case competitions, has any stipends for attending industry conferences (a lot of schools do, but no one ever asks about it), has info sessions with recruiters from companies you're interested in - DO THEM. Getting the facetime in front of recruiters and other professionals landed myself and multiple friends with well paid summer internships, and interesting stories to tell during recruitment season. This is especially important if you're at a non-target school, like I was. It's a bit snobby, but working for a well-regarded, global brand (think CPG, tech, finance - the P&Gs, Goldman Sachs, FAANGs of the world) will hike you up to priority on the interview list. Especially in marketing, it can give you a small, immediate advantage vs. someone who worked for a lesser-known brand. ("Oh, /u/dancerbby worked for _____, I like their stuff, I wonder if she was worked on Campaign X")

This will be repeated to you a million times in school, but networking really is worth everything. This goes beyond messaging people on LinkedIn who have your dream job and offering to take them out for coffee - I got my highest paid internship after discovering a fellow intern had done his previous co-op at Company X, which is notoriously hard to get into. As he had just been through their recruitment cycle a few months previously, he was able to show me the entire process, from how he crafted his resume to the follow up questions he asked his eventual hiring manager. Ask the people around you, they may have experiences and stories you never would've dreamed of! In another roundabout way - I have had friends in other industries recommend me jobs that pop up at their companies that I never would have heard about otherwise, without me asking about it, and when I wasn't actively looking for a new opportunity. Obviously be graceful and not pushy about it, but being known for being passionate, interested, and eager to take on new challenges in your field will take you a long way.

As for what they're looking for in an employee - I've only been out of school for 5 years, so no MBA yet, likely in the next 2-3 - but I think the clincher for what I brought to the table for this job vs. other candidates was diversity in my experiences. I was rejected for a few jobs early in my career for not having sufficient technical skills, so in the jobs I did take on I made to do lots of work on the analytical side - having concrete #s to back up any insight will take you farther than intuition ever will in marketing. So my last 3 jobs have been in business analysis, strategy at a marketing agency, and a social media role at an entertainment brand. Whenever I noticed that I lacked knowledge or experience in a certain area of marketing, I went out of my way to request to be put on a similar project at work, or take a course (Lynda is great, and free through a lot of public institutions like libraries). You can absolutely take the traditional route and specialize in one specific area of marketing, but in my role being able to show how I had touched every piece of the marketing puzzle and excelled was crucial.

Feel free to PM me with any extra questions, and hope this was helpful!

Thank you for the detailed comment! I’m not in marketing but looking at your experience definitely taught me a few things :) you are a really positive person and hope to see you more on Reddit :) and I’m looking forward to make my parents proud, not that I care but I just want them to shut up 😂

I’m glad to hear that. I just had a baby and I labored for 30 hours, so the nurses turned over their shifts a couple times while I was there. Each one was more amazing than the last, and without the nurses there I truly would have been lost. I kinda thought the doctor would be there the whole time but nope! She just popped in at the end to catch the baby. God bless the nurse who was there with me as I delivered. I threw up on her shoes, literally cried on her shoulder for hours, and after being hopped up on drugs asked her if we could be best friends forever.

Why’s that? Specialty RNs don’t get paid more. There’s a difference between hospital and non hospital, but within the hospital, nurses are usually paid the same no matter what unit they’re on. At least the 3 hospitals I’ve worked at.

They don’t, which is why I said there’s a difference between hospital and non hospital nursing. People also assume when they hear I make what I do that it must be all that overtime. Nope. Not one shift. I know plenty of nurses that do tons of overtime, I make half of what they do whoch is insane. No way jose.

Edited to say that in the hospital there are ranges in salary, but not based on unit/department. Years of experience, shift, education and certifications go into that calculation. Everyone starts with the same base.

East coast. I started at about $80,000 almost 10 years ago, so it wasn’t too long to hit 100,000. I wouldn’t say it’s unique to the area though. I have nurse friends all over that make the same or more than me. Obviously I know some that don’t, too.

That’s not true. Bare minimum hours as a new grad I made over 60k in the Midwest in the lowest paid hospital in the area only working 3 days a week. OT plus bonus even as a new grad can put you in 6 figures. Just a lot of hours, or floors that don’t keep staff. Most places start much higher, and have better incentives like sign on bonuses or travel bonus. NP’s don’t normally have the opportunity for OT. The market is becoming over saturated with NP’s, but lacks bedside RN’s. We have 4-5 major hospital systems but each one is constantly hiring RN’s.

Not a woman but am a creative operations manager for an in house agency for a large corporation. It's the best compromise because it still feels like an agency but you get the benefits of a large company and emphasis on work-life balance etc.

/r/lawschool, /r/law. General advice, make sure you know what you're doing and why you want to go to law school (not just because you like to argue or because you can't think of anything else) and got to the best school you can at the lowest tuition possible.

Not the same person, but the main three majors that end up as Data Scientists are Math, Computer Science, and Business, as the field is considered a combination of the three. I am a Data Analyst and majored in Math, but have friends in the field that majored in CS and Business.

College basics, 2 year associate in science Xray and 1 1/2 years Ultrasound certificate. I'm on the higher end on pay, actually capped out. Been doing it 17 years. There are Bachelor programs now which weren't offered back then

Love it. I am the exception to the rule. I started as a teller in the late 80's when I was 20 and worked my way through loan processor, mortgage loan originator, auto lending, consumer lending, compliance and finally landed in business and commercial lending. I do both commercial and business lending, so I do real estate and also business loans for equipment and working capital. I never went to college. I thought about it but at this point it wouldn't be worth the investment.

Veterinarian. But want to point out most veterinarians don't make nearly that much. Be kind to your vet. We have ridiculous student loans and in general not a great pay rate and a super high stress job.

With the trends moving towards trend-following algo trading strategies, do you have any advice on how to go about preparing for a career in investment management/research? I'd be grateful to chat somewhere else more convenient like linkedin if you'd like!

I manage a $38b institution portfolio, so my current focus tends to be on alternatives, private equity, private debt, infrastructure, and real estate strategies. I can’t give much insight on private wealth.

My advice is be wary of overcrowded trades. Plenty of strategies work well until they are fully exploited. If everyone is piling in, it’s not the right time for you. (I’m pretty contrarian though)

Algorithmic trade is interesting because it can move the needle so quickly, so make sure you completely understand your strategies and where your exposures are. What market events could make you experience substantial drawdowns?

Diversify. Make sure you haven’t set up unintentional structural overweights in your strategy that increase your risk without increasing your alpha potential. Go passive in areas you don’t believe you have better information than most of the market.

Stay educated. I have a few designations but CFA was probably the most valuable.

Can I ask how you got into this line of work? I'm currently a teacher and love teaching and working with people but am getting burned out in public schools. I've thought about trying to find a corporate training-type job.

I actually fell into it by accident. I then got my diploma in adult education. Started as a trainer then moved into instructional design before getting into a managerial role. With your educational background I’d recommend just starting to apply for corporate trainer roles. You have a wealth of transferrable skills so the transition shouldn’t be too difficult.

Most employers look for a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, or a related field such as Engineering, Math, or Physics. If you don't have a formal education, they will want to see lots of experience to demonstrate your ability. See here for which languages would be most applicable to particular fields.

It is also good to look at job postings in your area for what languages are popular. If you are in a large metro area then you can find work with most languages, but some areas can trend to a particular set of languages.

At least check out some of the free online stuff to see if you like it at all.

There are self taught people in the field. I've seen a lot of them move into development from something like support within a company opposed to getting hired directly into that first development role.

For other IT, certifications are the best way to get a job. Obligatory I’m a guy comment, but I work in cybersecurity and if you have the right entry level certs (CompTIA, Microsoft, Cisco) you can make a good deal of money.

If you like computers. If you want to understand how things work. If you appreciate the design of applications or websites. Small things like this. I was into video games as a kid, so I appreciate a bunch of little things.

What are the most employable languages?

I prefer front-end, but everyone is different. Front-end is something like javascript/angular/etc. This deals with the ~pretty parts~ of the development. There is also back-end languages. From my own experience, these are more "hard logic" languages. But it really depends on who you are. Some say that once you understand the flow of the app you're working on and throw a few debuggers here and there, it gets easy. For me personally, I use C# MVC .NET. So I can use C# in the backend and javascript in the front. A lot of employers also seem to like Java. There are java and c# developers in my company that pick fun at each other. Then you have the PHP people.

Do you need any qualifications?

Generally, many employers want you to have a bachelor's in comp sci. or a usually a relevant STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) degree, such as IT, information systems, engineering. In bigger companies, it VERY difficult to get your foot in the door with no experience. It's better to start as a helpdesk at some smaller company and find out different ways to automate their processes or improve their efficiency. Networking is actually pretty huge, regardless of what anyone thinks. If you're a peasant helpdesk technician but you let people know you're into this or that when it comes to improving the company, people will think of you when something comes up.

I got my degree in computer science and computer engineering, so I’m not really the best person to ask about how to get into it later in life. I know people who have gotten masters degrees in it after doing something else first, but I don’t know if that is the easiest or best way.

I work as a developer and didn't have a related degree. If you can prove you have the skills you can get hired.

Also, there are plenty of tech jobs that pay well that don't require coding (System or application admins). You should do some research for your local market to see what's in demand. Generally, the bigger city you're in the more specialized you can go for.

It would vary depending on the specific job that you're looking for. I work in the Salesforce ecosystem and certifications are the way to go. They also give away their product to non-profits so there are tons of those non-profits that need volunteers and that can be a good way to get experience. Cisco and Microsoft certs are also well respected.

Once you have a general idea of what you want to do, you can do research to find out the specifics of how to get into that specific role

I went to a one year training program. You don't have to do it this way. If I could start again I'd learn a trade first and get into film that way. The training takes longer but where I live there are lots of incentives and opportunities to earn while you learn. Then, when film work is sparse or you get sick of living in a film town (absolutely necessary first step), you have transferable qualifications, can live anywhere, and can even work for yourself and make a great living.

Film work is about your contacts more than your qualifications. Most people build their network, resume and / or portfolio (for creative roles) by volunteering on indie projects.

It takes patience and persistence, but that is because it's union work with benefits and a comfortable living wage. There's a lot of competition, but all you need to succeed is determination and people skills.

To be honest, I just applied. I was a bench tech for about 8 years until my job ended due to hospital closure. When I interviewed for the job, I emphasized the few projects I was in charge of as well as my problem solving and leadership ability learned from being a solo night shift tech for many years. I haven’t been in the role long and I’m still learning, but so far I really like it. I thrive on responsibility though so it may not be for everyone.

I started out in records, but quickly got many other duties piled on top...and then more...and then more. Although we were a big company, we weren't large enough to need specialists outside of lawyers.

As consultant, I provided services in all areas. After all, that's what I did when I was HR boss. I did everything from formulating employment guidelines for M&P's (mom & pops) to fixing fucked up HR departments for other companies, and being the entire HR department for a few small but growing concerns.

Less than a decade. Length of time isn't a meaningful yardstick. I got very lucky and ended up in a company with an excellent CEO, an excellent president, an excellent HR boss, and an excellent #2 HR boss. Expectations were very high, but so too was the reward structure. Rewards not only in pay, but also in training and support.

That company was sold to a large national concern. I remained, and was subordinate to a woman 45+ who had lots more experience than I (she was shipped in from the company that bought our company and was made interim HR boss). Her specialty was union contract negotiations.

She had 15+ years experience on me, but she in reality, she was about as useful as tits on a hand grenade. She didn't know anything about records and compliance. She had a skim knowledge of employment law (at best), and she didn't know fuck all about hiring or negotiating. To top it all off, she was a tragic mess on her specialty. She was so bad that the other side refused to proceed until she was removed from negotiations.

My point being is that length of time isn't a valid yardstick at all. A solid CV and proven results is more important than punching a time clock.

I do! I'm an editor at an online publication. Fun thing was when I started the job, we were tiny and I made $18k with my masters degree. Then the business exploded (metaphorically) and, thankfully (especially as I live in New York City), so did my salary!

This is my dream job. Got a BA in Communications, emphasis on advertising and film, have a portfolio from uni projects and imaginary stuff (I take a music album and create a whole universe thing around it). But it doesn't seem enough. I tried to apply as assistant of creative directors, but I always get rejected.

What is your day to day like? What skills are most important to what you do? What is your education background? How did you get into your position?

​

I'm currently an engineer working for a design firm, but I'm realizing that my soft skills exceed my hard skills. I am able to communicate with tech minds and the business world alike, which I think would be better utilized in a management or coordinator role. I'm currently researching to see what options I have! Thanks in advance for your time!

Day to day varies, but I generally travel to the client site M-Th. Some airplane + hotel time. Days are generally filled with client meetings, making powerpoint decks, working through problems, doing research, and meeting with my project team. I typically work 50-65 hours per week. I wake up early to work out, go to the office, then grab dinner and head back to the hotel to relax and/or finish up some work.

Skills will vary based on what type of consulting you're doing, but overall some of the core skills are empathy, communication (verbal and written), flexibility & ability to take feedback, problem-solving, analytical capabilities, and resourcefulness

I got my job through my MBA program, which answers the education background question. I did not have any business education prior to my MBA, my undergrad was in psychology. I did work for a few years prior to my MBA

I think consulting could be a good fit for you, and I would also look into product management roles. They always need people with engineering backgrounds who can communicate with both business and tech.

I've been working as a researcher for the past 20 years or so. Started my career doing grant work, moved on to working in an academic thinktank, and then for different government agencies before moving to an organization that worked with well over a thousand higher education institutions worldwide. Once there, I continued work as a research, but also moved into research management and directing large multi-faceted research projects with teams across multiple organizations. I had an awesome career there that I loved and made great money, but over the years the workload and stress affected my health negatively and I made the decision to step down from that role eventually. Now, I continue to work as a researcher and do mainly grant and contract work to give me more control over my time and workload. If you have any questions, feel free to message me.

It is doable. You'll have to be among the best, working for wealthy clients probably or a large corporation. Very competitive.

In any case, as someone studying to be a CPA you should remember that how much you make is not nearly so important as what you do with what you make. You can make $100k+ a year and be more broke than someone making $50k if you're bad with your money. My coworker has a sister who makes over $100k a year. She spends every dime she has. Has no savings. No retirement. And sees no reason why she should. My coworker works in an admin position is very frugal and responsible and often complains how much she resents how she has to worry about helping her sister when they're older because her sister has no plans for the future.

There's nothing wrong with aiming for higher salary, but people who aren't there shouldn't feel bad about themselves for it. It's not the be all end all of your actual accumulated wealth.

I manage an aesthetic spa. It's high stress in that I get involved with my patients, and their lives, as well as transacting thousands of dollars at a time. But I love it: the industry, the people, the doctors. It's wonderful. I do tend to stay very busy, but I too am typing this at work.

Right place, right time. I was using the software (the company was small at the time) and was a power user, ended up on a lot of calls with people at the software company. My name got around as someone who was willing to test stuff, and I was good at helping other users on the software company's forums.

When I wanted to make a career change I called someone there and asked if they were hiring. I initially was hired on in a different position and hated it (and wasn't very good at it), but I was great at the small bit of teaching I had to do in that position, so they asked me to move to teaching full time. Never been happier!

I wish everyone who commented would also include how much rent/living expenses they pay, out of curiousity. I earn 23.000€ and that's not a lot at all but I live comfortably so I'm curious as to what the difference is here.

Over $160k per year with 20,000 shares in equity. I am a graphic designer for a large technology company. I have 7 years experience. I do not have a formal design degree. I work my ass off and have increased my salary over 480% over 7 years.

According to my taxes last year, I made about 115k. I'm a sales consultant. I have a bachelors but it isn't related to my job at all. Most of my similarly-paid coworkers don't have any advanced education, and some only have GEDs.

I was working in education, got invited to help a friend with sales for their company in exchange for travel. While there, I got scouted by someone looking for talent to work for their company, with better pay and better travel.

Life is mostly good. I do think the job has an expiration date. Right now, I'm young and I'm cute, and I have the stamina needed for the job. Eventually, I won't.

Marketing and lead generation. I specialize in marketing automation platforms like Marketo, Eloqua, etc.

I do not have any degrees. I have been in the field for almost 11 years, have never lost my passion for it, and now make three times what I did when I started - I started making over 100k 6 years in. What I like most is that it is ever changing and there is always something new and innovating. I learn things quickly and if I can't continue to learn and evolve I become complacent and bored so it's a perfect fit for me.

In my previous job as a contractor doing software training for a fortune 100 company, I was making well over 100k, but it was 75% travel and no benefits (besides hotel points and airline miles). It was the most high stress I have ever lived under, but I'm glad to have had the opportunity to have that job for 2 years in my mid-twenties. I absolutely don't miss wondering everyday if that would be my last day of work or not though, I watched so many co-workers get fired without warning, and then one day I got the call and was kind of relieved.

However, I’ve been with my company 5 years and worked my way up +$30k over those years (there’s a chart of my salary growth in my post history if anyone is interested). Also, I live in the DC area so companies around here pay DC prices... the same work in Ohio would be more in the $60-80k range. HCOL areas can easily add a $20k bump on what a job pays elsewhere.

I read this wrong and thought it had something to do with you using oil , like baby oil or something in your routine lol. 7 days for weeks is a alottt of time wow, had no idea it could be more than a few nights a week , but I guess the clubs don’t close ?

Lots of women I worked with would work months straight with maybe a Sunday off if they were lucky. I could never handle people for that long with no break. Lol. Where I’m from, you tour as a feature entertainer and get paid for your shows as well through an agency that books you. The clubs in that province were open 7 days a week. Some opened at noon too. Ugh.

Getting my LMSW was the best decision I ever made, I work in a practice doing fee for service family therapy and work as a Program manager for a substance use agency. Both salaries combined is about 110,000 yearly.